Boat designers up for award

Mount Maunganui boat design company Hall Marine Design is a finalist in the consumer category of the 2017 Best Design Awards for its Purekraft 550 centre console model.

“These awards are held by the Designers Institute of New Zealand, so it really cool to be recognised for our hard work,” Says CEO Jarrod Hall.

The marine design consultancy is also attracting international attention, and their

Purekraft kitset range of boats was recently re-branded by the regional branding agency Woods as the Ikea of boats.

They offer kitsets, hull/decks only or completed vessels.

The kitsets are CNC cut and sent flatpacked to save on shipping costs. A comprehensive instruction manual is provided. It’s a boat acquisition method that saves customers thousands of dollars.

Jarrod started building the kitset boats because of customer demand, but now demand is swinging the other way and people are wanting to buy the finished product.

“We did the May boat show and got lots of really good feedback, lots of orders,” says Jarrod. “And now we are looking forward to the Auckland On Water Boat Show from September 28 to Oct 1.

“We actually went to the May boat show to sell kitsets, which we sold plenty of, and our design services. But we have got people wanting turnkey packages. We have established a relationship with a company that’s manufacturing them and we currently have a new design that’s in production and will be released at the Auckland Show.”Hall Marine Design brings design led thinking to the marine industry, says Jarrod. There are no limits or restriction, but they use a proven process.

“The technical aspect of hull design is market leading, using specialised software to simulate hull performance before we go to manufacture.

“Detailed weight studies are calculated in order to understand and ensure the boat is going to ride and rest correctly.

“Combine this with design led exploration of the boat above the water and you get an unbeatable product that is unmatched by anything else on the market.”

Boats are often designed for a specific activity where the Purekraft approach is to design a boat for everything from fishing, to entertaining with friends.

The 550 centre console includes a forward or rearward facing back rest, that folds away to make way for a cockpit table that can be used for entertaining and a cooler bin for food and drinks. There’s also dive bottle storage and a concealed pull out ladder.

“Through designing a dynamic space that can be arranged to suit various activities this vessel challenges what is possible in a small vessel,” says Jarrod.

The kitsets have been available for about four or five years, but they weren’t promoted a lot because Hall Marine’s core business is custom design work.

“We primarily design boats,” says Jarrod. “Everything we design is router cut, it’s an existing technology we use for day to day production, but we also supply these kitsets especially for DIY consumers.

“It’s all MIG welded. Some customers might TIG hand rails or cleats, but TIG would be too slow for the whole boat”, says Jarrod.

“The really good MIG machines are quite expensive, but we have companies that we are in contact with that lease them to our customers, so we can help with that as well.”

Welding time depends on the model. The centre console model is about 110-120 hours to do the aluminium work.

“Some customers get the aluminium work done professionally and do the fit out themselves. Now we have manufacturing capacity, it’s really easy for us to keep that as efficient and effective as possible.”

The underfloor structure interlocks together so it only goes in one location, which is only the start when improving efficiency.

“Our processes are well dialled in because that’s what we specialise in. We have a really good handle on what’s doable and what’s not, but we like to push the boundaries, which is how PureKraft was born.”